Removal proceedings

Legal process prior to deportation from the US In the United States, removal proceedings are administrative proceedings to determine an individual's removability under federal immigration law. Removal proceedings are typically conducted in Immigration Court (the Executive Office for Immigration Review) by an immigration judge (IJ). History Prior to the passage of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 ("IIRIRA"), deportation proceedings were used to determine whether a person could be deported from the United States. When IIRIRA took effect in 1997, deportation proceedings were replaced by removal proceedings, though any cases begun before IIRIRA's effective date continue to be processed as deportation proceeding. Procedure Persons in removal proceedings are called "respondents." Cases are decided by immigration judges, who are appointed by the Attorney General and are part of the Department of Justice. Removal proceedings are prosecuted by attorneys from the Department of Homeland Security ("DHS"), or more specifically, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Notice to Appear Removal proceedings begin when an immigration attorney files a NTA with